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“People rarely succeed unless they have fun in what they are doing.” —Dale Carnegie
The idea of living a simple life with less stuff sounds attractive to many.
But often, they begin to feel overwhelmed,
Learning how to declutter your home and (and as a result, decluttering your life) doesn’t need to be as painful as some make it out to be. And the benefits are numerous.
The Benefits of Decluttering Your Life
There are many benefits to owning fewer possessions. Even then, it’s tough to move into action. That is… until the many benefits of getting rid of clutter reveal themselves:
Less to clean. Cleaning is already enough of a chore, but having to clean around things you have zero emotional attachment to (or worse, actively dislike) makes cleaning the house much more stressful.
Less to organize. Finding things suddenly become easier. Things don’t just “disappear” anymore. You can actually move around your home and enjoy the space, instead of moving around things that are in the way.
Less stress. Looking around at the clutter is a nausea-inducing sight once your home becomes cluttered enough. Wouldn’t it be nice to be able to look around and see a home you love?
Less debt. Spending less time shopping for material possessions and adding to the clutter means your wallet and bank accounts remain fuller, your credit cards’ statements are lower, and your home doesn’t get filled with costly things you don’t need.
More financial freedom. Most American households live paycheck to paycheck (59% according to a recent survey done by Charles Schwab back in May 2019.) Nearly half of those surveyed carry credit card debt. Decluttering, paired with minimalism, will help you build up savings to keep you protected in case of unexpected emergencies.
More energy for your greatest passions. With less debt, more financial freedom, and
Ok, so now you know the benefits of decluttering your life, but you may be getting tripped up by the very next question… where in the world do you begin?
10 Creative Decluttering Tips
If you’re struggling and need guidance on how to declutter, you’ll need to get creative with your plans. Here are several interesting decluttering tips to get you started on decluttering your home:
- Start with 5 minutes at a time. If you’re new to decluttering, you can slowly build momentum with just five minutes a day.
- Give one item away each day. This would remove 365 items every single year from your home. If you increased this to 2 per day, you would have given away 730 items you no longer needed. Increase this number once it gets too easy.
- Fill an entire trash bag. Get a trash bag and fill it as fast as you can with things you can donate at Goodwill.
- Donate clothes you never wear. To identify them, simply hang all your clothes with hangers in the reverse direction. After wearing an item, face the hanger in the correct direction. Discard the clothes you never touched after a few months.
- Create a decluttering checklist. It’s a lot easier to declutter when you have a visual representation of where you need to get started. You can use our decluttering checklist.
- Take the 12-12-12 challenge. Locate 12 items to throw away, 12 to donate, and 12 to be returned to their proper home.
- View your home as a first-time visitor. It’s easy to “forget” what your home looks like to a new visitor. Enter your home as if you’re visiting the home of a friend. Write down your first impression on how clean and organized the home is and make changes.
- Take before and after photos of a small area. Choose one part of your home, like your kitchen counter, and take a photo of a small area. Quickly clean off the items in the photo and take an after photo. Once you see how your home could look, it becomes easier to start decluttering more of your home.
- Get help from a friend. Have a friend or family member go through your home and suggest a handful of big items to throw away or give to someone else. If you defend the item and want to keep it, your friend has to agree with your reason. If they don’t agree, it’s time to get rid of it.
- Use the Four-Box Method. Get four boxes and label them: trash, give away, keep, or re-locate. Enter any room in your home and place each item into one of the following boxes. Don’t skip a single item, no matter how insignificant you may think it is. This may take days, weeks, or months, but it will help you see how many items you really own and you’ll know exactly what to do with each item.
No matter which decluttering tip you choose to get started – whether it be one of these ten or one of countless others – the goal is to take your first step in decluttering your life with excitement behind it.
There is a beautiful world of freedom and fresh breath hiding behind that clutter. Deciding how to declutter your home is up to you.
For more decluttering tips, watch this short video we put together. In it, I provide 10 quick decluttering projects, each completable in just 5 minutes or less:
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General FAQ About Decluttering Your Home:
How do I create a decluttering checklist?
Creating a checklist is one of the easiest ways to keep track of what can and still needs to be reduced from your home. We’ve put together a Declutter Your Home Checklist you can use to instantly make a noticeable difference.
Just pick any 5-10 items from the list to start and you will be amazed with how quickly momentum builds up.
Do I need a professional organizer to help me get rid of clutter?
Absolutely not. Getting rid of the clutter in your home can be done by yourself. It can even be a fun family activity when using the decluttering tips found in this article.
How can I declutter quickly? Can it be done in a day?
Removing clutter from our homes and our lives doesn’t need to be rushed or done in a single day. It’s something that can be done over time and may even need to be done on a semi-regular basis. As long as you start the process today, you’re further along than you were yesterday.
Will owning less make my home look empty or boring?
Simple doesn’t mean sparse or boring. The opposite is true. With fewer mess and distractions, your home can become more peaceful. You can view your home as a space for rest and comfort, instead of a source of stress.
What’s the difference between declutter and unclutter?
They’re both interchangeable, though I prefer using “declutter.” The “de-” hints at being complete and permanent. I like to think of decluttering as something that solves the problem forever.
When should I declutter?
This is a personal question. When you find yourself overwhelmed by your possessions and tied down, it usually means you’re ready to start making a change. Note that this feeling is just a broad litmus test. The feeling of overwhelm can be different for everyone.
pboo says
Thank you everyone! I love learning little tips that go a long way.
I will share a favorite of mine:
The TIP: One way I keep it REALLY fun and ALWAYS under five minutes? I play a segment of the “William Tell Overture” while I do a last-minute tidy-up!
The DETAILS: My college roommate and I, typically in a hurry, too busy to clean,” decided to take ONLY 30 seconds JUST BEFORE leaving our dorm for classes to “tidy up,” (even this choice of words felt MUCH easier than “clean up”!)
We’d say, “Ready…?” and we would empty our arms of books, purses, sweaters, etc., and “do the tune” –(“dadut dadut dadut dut dut…”) — together, out loud, and for about 30 seconds, we’d tidy up the most conspicuously out-of-place items. We’d end up laughing as we gathered up our things and marched off to class.
The outcome? We saw how a tiny bit of time could make a HUGE difference when we were FOCUSED, TIME-LIMITED, and KEPT IT FUN!
The reward? Upon our return to our humble dorm room, we’d almost gasp at first sight when we opened the door! Like at a hotel: “Sweet! The MAID was here!”
The other reward is how this little extra effort continues to bless me through the years and phases of my life. It’s one of those priceless “gifts to me” that is still fun, still free, and always pays a big dividend for my little time invested!
pboo says
It’s actually “The Finale to the WT overture. Here’s it is…
http://youtu.be/xoHECVnQC7A
pboo says
It’s actually “The Finale to the WT overture. Here’s it is…
http://youtu.be/xoHECVnQC7A
May the JOY of The Lord be your strength!! :-D
“Pboo”
Gayle says
I LOVE this cute little idea! I have a hard time motivating myself to get started, but limiting my time and playing fun music helps. This is an even better idea than mine! It will be a fun and rewarding routine for each time I leave the house. :)
God bless you!
Vera says
My favorite method is not deciding what to take OUT, but, rather, deciding what to put IN. I completely empty a drawer, shelf or closet, then put what I really want in there. (It’s much easier for me to choose what I do want.) I find that deciding what to do with the remainder is easy then, maybe because I’ve already demoted those items in my mind.
Fiona Cee says
Deciding what to put IN is a great idea. I think that’s the way I may go. BEST tip, Vera!!!
Nicole Dennis says
I agree Fiona! Good on you Vera! ;)
Jill says
These are great tips! The next time I declutter my closet I’m going to try the 12-12-12 challenge! I am one of five and we are all living at home so this should be fun…
Terpopuler Untuk Kita says
I am a working mom with two kids, I don’t have any maid or helper to do daily chores at home
Susie says
I work full time and have one kid and one Husband that makes more extra work than my kid does. I’m planning 1 item to toss or give each day and 10 Items on my days off:) ……….. Wish me lots of luck!!!!!!!!!!!!
Ana says
Joshua, thank you so much for these simple yet powerful suggestions.
I live in Denmark, I never watch Oprah and I don’t know anything about feng shui or decluttering, we just call it a mess, though some of us think of it as an organized mess. I feel that exact way, although I have piles of crap, I still know where every little thing is placed, like, to the left of the screwdrivers, behind the black box and under the bag of rubber bands :) though this makes perfectly sense to me, people seem confused when they come to my home and my children do not share my brilliant sense of overview and/or memory. They tend to loose their things quickly and not to care for things for very long and I think it all comes down to my being a mess. It seems I have a lot to work on, and since I read this blog – and due to the fact that we danes are considered the happiest people on earth – I shall do so with a smile.
Sam says
Idiot
Paula says
Ana,
You sound like a fun & lovely person. I too am a mess. 8 kids and homeschooling was always my excuse. Today, the kids are off to college and I’m done schooling them…I’m still a mess. I easily get overwhelmed with trying to declutter…so many things that need tossing, but I always come back to “what if I need it.” And the sad thing is, I just threw something away the other day that I did need. So there’s a bit of negative reinforcement for me. On the other hand, what I threw out was of no consequence monetarily, so maybe that’s the positive reinforcement I needed!
I struggle with finding a place for everything…I have a house over 3500 sq. ft but the builder didn’t put any storage in. What a struggle…I’m definitely looking for built in storage in my next house!
At any rate, we all have our way of doing things. Not everyone can appreciate the genius in our method, but I am still trying to learn and change. Thank God He made us all different…it would be awful to live in a world where we were all the same.
Now that I found the blog (looking to declutter my house) I better get to it…I just felt the need to encourage you this day. Cheers from Texas!
Christina Scalise says
Great tips!
If I could just add one more…..
Place toss baskets in areas that have the most clutter to encourage family members to toss unwanted items DAILY; then empty those baskets each time they get full…..toss, sell, donate, etc.
Karen says
Agreed!
Just had a yard sale this weekend after using this idea for the last year. Set one hamper next to the laundry and one in the bedroom, and when we found anything we didn’t want/need it went in the hamper. When the hampers were full I sorted out “trash” and put “sell/donate” items into a sturdy bin in the garage. When I went to post the yard sale announcement we had 5 (!) foot locker sized bins full of clothes and household knick knacks, and I honestly couldn’t remember 90% of what was in them! Already put one hamper back (sold the other!), and have started again for spring.
It’s easier for me to make one quick decision at a time (ugh, these pants don’t fit, into the hamper not the dresser) instead of doing a major purge/sort. And one thing at a time can really add up!
Nicole Dennis says
That is another Awesome tip Christina, Thankyou! :)
Nicole Dennis says
That is another Awesome tip Christina. Thankyou! :D
Corina says
Great tips. I have been using the tip of throwing one item out a day. What I have found interesting are a few things. 1) I don’t miss the things I throw out and sometimes cannot even remember what they were. 2) cleaning up has become quicker 3) it gets easier too move things on as the year goes on and 4) there is a joy giving items to people who need them and you are also happy offloading them.
Caroline says
Putting “trash” and “throw it away” first is a bit upsetting. Donating should be first and then recycling. Then hopefully there’s very little left to put into a landfill.
lisa says
@ Caroline, for some people they really have too much stuff and limited resources. Donating and recycling take time, transportation, and energy some do not have.
Annette says
Thank you, Lisa! I have a huge number of books to declutter, and have tried to take them to charity shops in the past. But I don’t have a car and don’t often go to the places where they are. And with so much to declutter, I’ve realised that it will take too much time to try and sell them. So I’ve started throwing them away instead (for recycling). It feels awful, but you’ve confirmed what I’ve been trying to tell myself – that I don’t have the time or resources to do anything else and I might as well accept that.
Diane Porter says
Could you donate any of the books to your local library? As an avid reader – it almost hurts to hear you are throwing them away. I appreciate the efforts to declutter – goodness knows we all have too much stuff- but for the books – see if you can find them a new home before you just pitch them.
Beth says
Depending on your books.. a library may not want them! Some libraries have a “friends” bookstore, or an annual book sale, and this is where many of the books end up. It really depends on the quality of the books if it’s worth donating. Frankly, some libraries will end up recycling some of the books they get themselves–but it really depends on the library. Check out your own local library’s donation policy, as they are all different. They may be VERY happy to get them at some, and not so much at others.
Wendy says
Do you think if you made a few phone calls that some grateful people would come pick up your free books? I’m thinking women’s crisis centers, small libraries, groups for fundraising yard sales to name a few. You can look up https://www.freecycle.org
in your area or one of the many yard sale or buy, sell and trade FB pages for where you live.
Dinah says
I have donated a lot of stuff to AMVets, they pick up about every 6 weeks. The website is http://www.donatestuff.com
Marilynne says
Always try to donate first, toss only if it no longer has any value to anyone. JMO ;)
Rebecca says
Thanks for posting the website!
Sal says
try book crossing – a fun way to donate books http://www.bookcrossing.com/
Thyera says
Put them in boxes with a free sign on it and place it on the curb…someone will surely take them….some charities and thrift stores will pick up your items (for free). It is a shame to waste books..any books..even to recycling.
Brandi says
Where I live, we have a free-cycle group on Facebook. Just put a picture of the item and where it can be picked up and it’s a first come , first serve idea. sure helps for not having to throw away OR have to deliver, etc.
annie says
Why not take a book to an appointment or on your way somewhere and drop off a book? How fun it is to be sitting around a place and find a book left behind. Random acts of kindness….Have a great day!
Mo says
Have you tried to ask a friend or family member if they could do a favor and drop them off at a library or donate them for you..? Books can always be reused or recycled! Let’s all do our part to keep what we can out of landfills
L Kinsell says
betterworldbooks.com will pay you to send your old books to them which they sell or donate to literacy projects. They have drop boxes in some cities.
Amy says
Maybe you could just put them out front or somewhere close to where you live with a FREE sign on them…or post on Freecycle…you never know someone might them…just another thought!
Sam Owen says
My sister had the same situation. Tons of books and no takers and no vehicle to travel in to take them anywhere. She took 10 books at a time in a bag and went to the park and made a sign that said free books. She said they were usually
gone in 30 minutes. She sold a few of the best ones to a local book store. You only get a few dollars but you still aren’t putting them in a landfill. She gave some to a friend who worked at a prison for the prison library. It took time but she said she ended up with only about 20 books no one wanted and she took those to a paper recycling center.
Now that she has decluttered her life she has a library membership and seldom buys a book. If she does buy one she likes to get the paper back edition because it’s cheaper and when she’s done with it if she doesn’t have a friend that wants to read it she saves it and removes the pages and tapes them together to wrap presents. Her gifts are always a big hit just because of the way she wraps them!
Ellen says
There are books, and then there are books. YOU are free to interpret which are good usable books, and which are old, yellowed, bent/broken, and and generally ready for the trash. I’m a librarian and even I know when a book is ready for disposal. Just because something was a published book doesn’t mean it should or will last forever (aka paperbacks). Go forth and purge as you see fit!
Linda says
Good morning Lisa! I wanted to add another suggestion to the list of the ones already mentioned: Donate your books to a local jail or prison. Local libraries might be a bit “picky” about what books they’ll take but I promise you the local correctional facilities will not be! Libraries are usually not funded behind the walls and inmates are desperate for a way to pass the time. If you can’t get them there, contact a local ministry or church and ask for their help. I bet they’ll be glad to do it! blessings, linda
G says
The correctional facilities I’ve worked in will NOT accept books unless they’re sent in by the publisher. Books cannot be adequately inspected without destroying them and could too easily be used to introduce contraband.
Fiona Cee says
So sending good stuff to landfill is the answer? I think not. Ask for help. Some orgs may collect if you have some useful things. Have a yard sale. Don’t throw out good things.
Rebecca says
I have become more and more keen on the idea of being a tortoise vs the hare (see Fable). If you brought a bag of books to the local library or the a thrift store etc.. little by little over time you would feel like you did what you wanted to do (donate) and you would feel proud of the accomplishment, AND you could feel good each time you donate … spread the joy and good feelings over time. Anyhow, this is just a suggestion as a possible strategy to eat the elephant one step at a time. (yes, I know another animal analogy) :) ..
Hannah Blessing says
The Salvation Army will come by with a truck to pick up any usable items from your home. You can call them or schedule a pick-up time online.
Lara says
The majority of the stuff I run in to as a single mom of four kids is trash. Trash from food packages, trash from tearing up that school project they did not like, trash from the puzzle missing 1/3 its pieces, the shoes that look like they went through a shredder, the shirt that had more paint on it than the paper, etc. So yes, for me most is trash. Even though I do donate as much as I can to library, shelter, schools, etc.
Hilda says
It’s nice to be Green and to be generous. But the reality is that all that takes effort. When I am working to remove excess belongings from my home, I want it out immediately and not have it hanging around some more. I have a friend who told me “what a waste”. My response: “It’s not a waste. It’s my PROPERTY”. Seriously folks, you paid for it, don’t guilt-trip over doing what you want to do with it.
Joy Perkins says
THANK YOU for saying this. Charities spend $$$$ each year disposing of donations they can’t use because people feel better if they donate.
Hannah Blessing says
It’s sounds like you buy way too much.
Helen says
Purging is a constant process: tastes & interests & needs change. In any case, whether it is a little or a lot, I consider it all “excess” that I like to remove from my home.
Fiona Cee says
agree with you 1000%!!!
Michelle says
Always such quality advice here- thanks for that. Any word for those of us who feel like minimizing and de-cluttering are actually stealing time? I find myself constantly looking for “one more thing” to clear out. We are by no means hoarders and I often wonder how I can still have stuff to part with (I guess 3 kids, homeschool, families who pass stuff down…)!! I am actually making myself take a break from it because I get too caught up and I want to actually value what I am trying to create in our home. Thanks!
Britt says
@michelle, YES! I agree with you. I love the idea of minimalism and feel peace in a clutter free home but I do find myself dedicating more mental energy on it than I want.
Anne says
This is so fun!
I’ve been blogging just for the fun, inspired by your site and a few others. I love your light hearted posts and then those like todays’ that give depth. Several times I refer to your site from my site. And then today, up pops a ping from some anonymous person connecting your site to my site. I love tracking your progress and the inspirations that come, or the memory jogs. “That’s right, I remember that stage of decluttering!!” Keep writing . . . you inspire so many of us to stay focused.
Anne (www.minimalisthomeschooler.com)